Special Feature: Exercises to Lose Weight at Home Without Equipment

Can’t go to the gym but still want to lose weight? Fret not because there are exercises to lose weight fast at home without equipment. All you need is patience, dedication, and a little space in your humble home to start sweating those pounds away.

You don’t need a gym membership just to lose your excess pounds. As much as personal trainers’ help is unbeatable, it’s no longer an ultimate need. Here, we will discuss some of the most effective routines you can do for a full body toning workout at home.

If you are patient enough, you can start seeing results by the 4th or 5th week of working out at home. But before that, let’s discuss some of the usual pitfalls of home-based exercise:

Why exercising at home doesn’t work for you

As much as your fats are concerned, it doesn’t choose a place to burn. It only reacts to the physical activity you exert. And this is one of the biggest problems for most home exercisers. Yes, the comforts of your home will make workout drills more convenient. However, it can also be a bane. Being too comfortable and having the false sense of security will dampen the benefits of exercise.

Many of us think that since we’re working out at home, we have the luxury of time to do it later. What happens is that we forget about it or we continuously push the routine aside.

Also, you may not be exercising hard enough. The key to weight loss is discipline. If you can’t focus at home, you might as well go to a gym where there’s no television, fridge full of food, and crappy magazines that will waste your time.

Lastly, we tend to rest too much. If you’re doing HIIT routines, it’s understandable that resting in between is a must, but you shouldn’t detach from the idea of keeping the intensity running.

Not just about exercise

Take note that aside from exercise, your diet is also a major factor in weight loss. The routines we’ll discuss here would help a lot but the results would be more satisfying if you eat right.

Never follow crash diets or those that force you to starve just to lose weight. Remember that there’s a fine line between fasting and starving. When the latter ensues, your metabolism crumbles and you’ll lose more muscles than fats.

You need energy in order to perform your workout. With that, it makes no sense why you would skimp on major food groups. If you’re worried about eating excess calories, opt for fiber-rich food that satiates for long without too much guilt.

Before we proceed…

Before we dive into the routines, I want you to quit your old habits. Stop drinking that beer, slash the cigarettes, and forget about that after-workout frappe. All these sabotage your weight loss progress.

If you want something to sip, I advise that you pack up with cold water. You’ll sweat a lot and you need to stay hydrated all the time.

No-equipment routines you can do at home

Here are some of the exercises to lose weight fast at home without equipment. Feel free to combine things to come up with a HIIT routine:

➕Squats

Do you want to get rid of that belly flab? It’s time to squat your way out of it. With your feet shoulder-width apart, bend your knees slowly toward the floor until you are in a squat position. It should be leveled as if you’re sitting on a chair.

Remember not to squat too much that your knees are going beyond the distance of your toes. Don’t tuck your head in or slump your shoulders as well. Also, you keep a straight torso. This is an excellent full body toning workout at home since it engages your core.

If you’re integrating squats on your workout, never do the same routine per session. Come up with squats variation like jumping squats or with your arms straight in front.

In this video, Fitness Blender demonstrates a 5-minute squat routine. It comes with different ways to do squats. Check it out:

➕Push-ups

This classic routine never grows old when it comes to burning fats and achieving a full body toning workout at home. Push-ups are great for your triceps and chest. Always keep a solid position, not one with a slumping midsection or a shaking knee.

If you can’t do a full push-up, try a knee push-up first until you are toned enough to do the actual thing. I also don’t recommend that you force your body to do it right away. If it hurts so much, try switching to the modified push-up routine.

You can mix this routine with the squats if you want to carve your core. Remember that the harder it is to do, the more calories are being burned. Push-ups are worth the sweat. Just remember to breathe properly or you’ll starve your muscles of oxygen.

If you want a whole push-up workout, OnlyKinds Fitness shows us a full body toning workout at home without any equipment:

➕Running

In case you’re not a fan of any hard-to-do workout, you can take regular runs on the treadmill. However, this will be limited to cardio. Even if you’re going to burn fats, it’s not as optimal as pairing running with muscle-toning drills.

On a separate post, we discussed treadmill HIIT routines you can do at home. If you want to increase the intensity of your running, you can utilize the incline of the treadmill. This will engage your glutes. Make sure that you’re keeping a strong footing and not holding your breath.

If you’re looking for some exercises to lose weight fast at home without equipment, you can still do an indoor run/jog. In this video below, Jessica Smith shows us a 40-minute jogging routine that you can do at home. It doesn’t have any intricate routine or demanding equipment. Even if you only have a small room, this can be done:

You can do the above routine with your favorite upbeat music to make it more enjoyable.

Even if you’re not trying to lose weight, running has tons of benefits. In fact, studies found that running for at least 10 minutes decreases your chance of dying due to cardiovascular diseases.

➕Yoga

Now, there’s a reason to unleash your inner yogi. As a freehand exercise, yoga is one of the most convenient and most rewarding routines. Although it doesn’t include breath-pumping drills, it’s an excellent option for those with injuries but still wanting to lose weight.

Asanas in yogi offer full body toning workout at home. Aside from that, it also helps cleanse the mind of negative energies. I know that not all of us find this routine inviting, but once you found your place on the mat, it would be difficult to quit.

Remember, though, that asanas in yogi should be done according to mastery. Only after nailing a certain series that you can move on to the next one. This makes the routine holistic and challenging at the same time. Adhering to this rule will also keep injuries at bay.

In this video, Joy Scola shows us a 20-minute yoga workout that’s both fun and fat-burning:

➕Back dips

Usually, back dips are done with a gym bench, but it doesn’t mean you can’t do it at home. If you have a fixed bar or a leveled pavement at home, you can do back dips gym-style.

With your back on the bench or any platform, put your legs in front of you. Your hands should be supporting your weight spread across your buttocks, legs, and core. Once you feel a stretch on your triceps, start contracting and expanding your triceps slowly. Still, you should practice caution when doing these exercises to lose weight fast at home without equipment.

This is just a small routine that you can pair with the above-mentioned drills. This is an excellent way to tone your core and build muscles on your arms and legs. If you want more guidance, physical therapist Jeff Cavaliere shows us the right way of doing back dips:

➕Lunges

Lunges are staples of home workouts since it’s easy to do and it doesn’t require any equipment. You can start with a static lunge for a maximum of 15 seconds. Remember, you shouldn’t hold a stretch for more than 15 seconds or it will start to hurt your muscles.

Both your knees should be bent at 90 degrees and put much of the weight on the forward leg. Always use the balls of your feet, especially when switching from one foot to another.

From there, you can perform variations of lunges including the front foot elevated lunge, reverse lunge, curtsy lunge, and a slider lunge among others. You can check the variations HERE.

If you want a routine combining squats and lunges, here’s a 5-minute drill fromwellness expert Adam Michael Brewer and the WebMD:

➕Plank

For those who want to focus on burning fats on their belly and arms, planking is one great way to ignite the fat incinerator engine. There are so-called cardio plank routines that will speed up your heart rate without taxing your joints too much.

Of course, holding a plank for 15 seconds or so isn’t that easy especially for beginners. It’s important that you do necessary stretching before diving into this routine.

Always take a break in between intervals. This is so your muscles will recover and you can prevent possible overuse injuries. Aside from planking, you can also mix it up with other routines like squats and lunges for a full body toning workout at home.

If you want a planking workout all set for you, here’s one from Bowflex. It’s a 3-minute routine that will surely let out those beads of sweat on your forehead:

How to boost weight loss at home

Aside from the 7 routines I discussed above, there more ways to increase weight loss while at home. I’d like to emphasize the value of eating right aside from performing a proper exercise. If you’re not careful with what you’re putting inside your body, you might just be breaking even with the calorie count. Worse, you’re exercising in vain.

Give your body a big favor by eating to boost your metabolism. Stay hydrated and never hold up when you feel like going to the bathroom. It’s also time to eat greens and fruits like you mean it.

Most of all, stop compensating for the sake of eating more. Remember, it’s not healthy to stretch your exercise for more than 45 minutes. If you do compensate, you’ll hurt your muscles and have more calories stored. That’s a double whammy you wouldn’t want to experience.

I’d also advise that you remove all possible distractions: salty junk food, fast food, sweets, and the likes. Aside from this, here are added suggestions for losing weight at home:

➕Always challenge yourself

If your routine is getting boring, try another drill to keep the fun. The biggest weight loss killer is lack of interest. You should find ways to make things worth looking forward to. If you like, you can have a workout partner or a journal to track your progress.

➕Come up with a workout schedule

I’ve proven time and again that workout routines only work if you give time to it. Always schedule your workout or you’ll stand the chance of not doing it at all. Setting it as a priority will help you achieve your weight loss goals.

➕Set your goals

Never fly blind with your weight loss plan. Always set small goals that you should accomplish along the way. Never go big right away. Set a month-long goal then another one once you finish it. This way, you won’t be frustrated. Still, don’t be too overconfident or reward yourself with food.

With exercises to lose weight fast at home without equipment and the right lifestyle, you surely can lose weight in no time.